EVENT: GUEST POST FOR EVERGREEN DISHES Sometime back Jayashree, who blogs at EverGreen Dishes asked me to be a guest on her blog. I promised her that as soon as I got back from my trip to India I would make something for her blog. However, time just flew, with me falling sick and then with Navratri and now Diwali preparations. However, I feel bad when I’ve made a commitment and cannot see it through. Jayashree is quite a busy body, she not only has 3 ebooks published but also runs a popular Facebook Group called Desi Bloggers Connect. I got to know her through some food blogger groups that we both are a part of. Her blog is full of South Indian recipes, a variety…
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Continue ReadingGuest No.10 I was supposed to post this last week but the whole schedule got messed up. I had some posts that had to b live on certain dates (that’s what happens when you’re in too many groups!) and problems with the internet. It rained a lot last week and many places in Mombasa were flooded. My 10th Guest on the blog, its my sister in law Heni. She’s married to my cousin Hiren. His mum was my 3rd guest. She had prepared Tangy Creamy Potato Curry. I’ve not had much opportunity to spend time with Heni, but whatever time we spend together at my dad’s home, their home or an outing, its fun. When I first met…
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Continue ReadingGuest No.9 My guest this week is my sister in law Arti. She is my hubby’s sister and the youngest.Yes we have two Arti’s in the family… my brother’s wife and my hubby’s sister. When I got married, Arti was very thin.I thought that if somebody huffed and puffed and blew her away, she would probably fly away. Her friends became my friends as I didn’t know anyone in Mombasa(except for my aunt’s family). At social gatherings she would make sure that I was not left alone. We didn’t spend that many years together as after my marriage she went off to UK to complete her beautician course. She came back and that’s when her training in the kitchen began under my…
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Continue ReadingGUEST NO.8 ON THE BLOG My 8th Guest on the blog is Mehwaesh Islam. Now you may be wondering how did an Islam enter the Patel family. Let me clear up the air for you. Mehwaesh is originally from Bangladesh, married to my best friend Daxa’s son. Daxa and family are more like family than friends to me.Paras, her son is like my son. So technically that makes Mehwaesh my daughter in law. I first met Mehwaesh during their wedding in Bangladesh. At first sight she appeared to me as a very sophisticated lady. On getting to know her, she is a very intelligent, caring, quiet and a friendly person. I had the opportunity to lunch with them at their quaint little home…
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Continue ReadingGUEST NO.7 ON THE BLOG My 7th guest is my dear little sister Sapna. Sapna is one of those type of people who does not like to take sides when two people fight. She never sided with either of us when my brother and I used to fight. She is a very dependable person and can juggle a series of chores in a jiffy. I have not spent that much time with my sister but whatever time I have spent with her is memorable. I’m so lucky to have a sister with whom I can share all my joys and sadness, distance makes no difference. She immediately will know how I will feel and I will get a comforting message from…
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Continue ReadingGUEST NO.6 ON THE BLOG This week my guest on the blog is my sister in law (hubby’s sister) Varaharupa. When I got married, she was a vision of a modern ISKCON devotee with short hair cut, loved dressing up and never saw her without any jewellery. Things changed when she got married, it was only saris and her jewellery. After my marriage, obviously friends and families of my in laws would invite us for dinner or lunch to their place. As most newly weds would want to, I’d want to wear my saris but didn’t know how to drape them well. Varaha would help me to drape them. Her stay in Canada and Vrindavan temples meant that she would meet a lot of foreign…
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Continue ReadingGUEST NO. 5 ON THE BLOG I’m trying to feature my family and friends on my blog weekly. However, last week I couldn’t feature any guest as I was down with a bad flu and fever. Still getting over the nasty cough, its very persistent. This week my guest is my sister in law Arti (my brother’s wife). When I asked her to write a recipe for the blog, her immediate reaction was ‘ahahhaa that’s not me Mayuriben that is something you do! I don’t measure and cook, I don’t know what to make’ and the excuses kept on coming. I suggested that she should make her famous cranberry pickle but immediately realized that its not cranberry season. (shhh we’ll get her…
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Continue ReadingGuest No.4 on the Blog My guest this week is my charming niece Pooja. Young, energetic, caring and always smiling. Pooja loves helping people, it just comes very naturally to her. Born in Kenya, partially brought up in Kenya and then in US, she is pretty much a very down to earth sort of girl. She would come to spend her holidays in Mombasa when she was very young. She loved to be around my mother in law or me when we worked in the kitchen.It seemed that she was observing how we were preparing the food. Trips to the beach was like an ultimate dream come true for her. She simply loved the sand and the sea. I remember as a toddler she…
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Continue ReadingGUEST NO.3 ON THE BLOG My 3rd guest on the blog is my middle foi (fupi, paternal aunt) Manjulaben. I was really surprised when her daughter in law Heni said ‘mum’s going to send a recipe for your blog.’ When I heard that I was surprised because I thought the old generation would not really bother to measure the ingredients and do all the writing. Ok she got her daughter in law to write down the recipe as she narrated it to her. After the surprised moment, I was grinning from ear to ear because my foi or Manju aunty as we all call her is such a sport. My memories about her…well when she…
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Continue ReadingGuest No. 2 on the blog My second guest on the blog is my dear kaki (chachi) Charulata. Always there for me, my helper, my adviser and my sympathizer. She probably has heard a million woes from me and never has she once said “oh no Mayuri not again.” She started a fashion designing course which she had to leave half way. However her love affair with fabrics didn’t end there. While I run a mile(or rather miles) away from a sewing machine and needles, she developed a passion for stitching since she was 8! At that age I probably was helping my mum peel carrots and potatoes and reading books.My kaki is an ace quilter. She creates magic with patches. I’ve watched her work…
